A landscape through time

The landscape paintings by the artist John Hodgson reconstruct how the Bleasdale
area would have looked at six particular points in time. They are interpretations
based upon detailed archaeological and environmental data, and are as close
as possible to how we understand the landscape to have been shaped over time.
The landscape is dynamic, and the main agent of change is human activity, which
stretches back over hundreds and thousands of years.

Bjärehalvön - A unique Golf-Age landscape

The Bjäre peninsula was no less a treasure for the settlers of the Golf
Age. At that period that lasted app. 80 years (1934-2013 AD), our climate was
a few degrees milder than it is today. The light soil of Bjäre together
with the easily bought politicians suited the players in the Golf Age. They
preferred to place their Golf restaurants and the magnificent bunkers on heights
with a panorama, and there were no shortage of these on Bjäre. The long
coastline was a real goldmine during that period when trading with distant lands
and contacts were flowering at the Market of Boarp and when the road 105 was
the easiest road to travel between the airport directly to the golf course.

Die Suche nach Yggdrasil

Fraxinus excelsior is the Tree of the Year 2001. In the nordic mythology it
is known as Yggdrasil. According to the Edda, Thule is an Island where Yggdrasil
grows. Conjectures are made to where Thule could be situated. There are indications
that Thule could be the island Saaremaa in Estonia. Fraxinus excelsior is indeed
growing at the border of a lake that resulted from a meteorite impact.

Trolls, mounds and tunnels

According to tradition a conflict once raged between the troll family in the
mound on one hand and the chapel and priest on the other hand. The origin for
the quarrel was connected to the bell by which the priests were calling the
local villagers to service. The sound from the bell disturbed the trolls and
they tried everything to silence it.

A window into the past

How has the landscape around Albersdorf changed over the past six millennia?
What effect did cultivation of the land and grazing livestock have on the soils?
Was there strong soil erosion in prehistoric times, the Middle Ages or the recent
past? If so, did erosion over longer periods of time strongly change the landscape
topography? How did man react to his changing environment?

These questions were studied at the Archaeological-Ecological Centre Albersdorf
(Archäologisch-Ökologischen Zentrum Albersdorf, AÖZA) in close
co-operation with the Ecology Centre at the University of Kiel.

Zechstein and mining in the Spessart

Not only does Zechstein offer generally good soil conditions for most forms
of agricultural practice, it also occurs in climatically favoured sites, making
areas where it comes to the surface very interesting locations for man. It is
presumed, that even prehistoric settlers preferably settled in its vicinity.
One must also assume that the presence of ore in the lower layers of the Zechstein
was already well known to prehistoric man. It is likely that Neolithic settlers
had detailed knowledge on the spatial distribution of such useful ores. In this
light, the peculiar accumulation of prehistoric ramparts in the area surrounding
Bieber, which came to be one of the most important mining areas in the Middle
Ages and early modern times, was no coincidence. The history of mining in Spessart
began much earlier than documented records would suggest.

Archives in the peat

Dowris in the 1820s: One day in early summer around 1825, two men were trenching
potatoes in the Derreens on the shore of Lough Coura at Dowris near Whigsborough.
All thought of potatoes must have vanished from their minds at the sight of
the fantastic hoard of gold-coloured bronze objects which they unearthed with
their spades.

Prehistoric Hessian-Bavarian truckers

When visitors come to Frammersbach in the Spessart, they will notice the ever
re-occurring image of the Fuhrmann - the carter - depicted on the houses in
the village and especially on most souvenirs. The tradition goes back to the
days when the continental transport of goods was of elemental importance for
the Spessart community.

Gudme - a Focus of Archaeological Research since 1833

This first archaeological boom in Funen begun in 1833 and thus ended in 1882.
45 tumuli had been excavated, 45 megalithic tombs had been registrered, 407
Iron Age graves had been excavated and 72409 flint and stone artefacts had been
collected.

The "Altvater"-Oak in Frammersbach

Near Frammersbach, deep in the Spessart, stood an ancient oak stood - weathered
and worn - until 1916, when havoc was bestowed upon it by a fierce thunderstorm.
At the time huge oak stood proud, with both massive healthy and withered grey
branches reaching majestically toward the skies. Visitors to the forest were
deeply impressed by the wooden giant, whom the locals from Frammersbach deeply
respected. The Oak was even considered holy by some.

The turf spade

One of the most successful turf-cutting enterprises of the 19th century was
in Mona Bog along the Shannon which provided work for several hundred people
from around 1825 until the end of the century. At the height of the enterprise,
5,000 tons of turf a year were ferried down the Shannon to Limerick.

Buried butter

The high acid content of the soil gives bogs great preservative qualities.
It turns out that between the 6th and 19th centuries A.D., people in Ireland
and Scotland buried their butter in bogs, making butter one of the most widespread
archaeological items found in bogs.

The Evidence from Pollen Analysis of a Bronze Age Mound in Bjäre, Sweden

Pollen analyses from different layers within archaeological features are considered
to be connected with human activity. For instance, in a grave mound the pollen
content in each layer may even have archaeological implications.

A House from the Stone Age for Albersdorf

The Stone Age house in Albersdorf gives us a vivid picture of domestic life
in the Neolithic Age. It was modelled after the best-preserved finding of a
house from the Funnel Beaker Culture in Northern Germany, which was excavated
in the 1970s in Flögeln in the Elbe-Weser Area.